Game board net



March 23, 1937.1x J, J, MGCULL'QUGH ET AL 2,074,859

GAME BOARD NET Filed Dec. 8, 1936 www Patented Mar. 23, 1937 'il OFFICEGAME BOARD NET Joseph J. McCullough and William K. L. McCullough,Philadelphia, Pa.

Application December 8, 1936, Serial No. 114,724

4 Claims.

Our invention relates to new and useful improvements in a game board netand has for one of its objects the provision of a net to be attached toa game board to catch any game pieces that fail to hold or stick to thegameI board after being thrown or otherwise projected at the gameboard.V

The invention is particularly adaptedfor use in connection with dartboards and the games played therewith where darts are employed thathavermetal tangs or points on one end and feather pins on the other end.Dart boards are generally placed in a vertical position against a wallabove a cement or smooth-wooden iioor and sometimes over objects such asheating radiators. When the darts fall on the floor, the points may bebroken or dulled and the feather pins may be damaged to such an extentthat they will no longer guide and stabilize the darts.

Should any of the darts fall behind a radiatorV or other practicallyimmovable object considerable difculty is experienced in retrievingthem. Therefore it is an object of this invention to provide a nettocatch darts to prevent them from being dulled, broken or otherwisedamaged, to prevent them from pitting a wooden floor and to keep themfrom falling behind objects in the locality of the dart board.

Another object of our invention is to provide a net of soft materialhaving a fair amount of resiliency to protect darts that may fall intoit.

Another object of our invention is to construct a frame including twobrackets for attachment to a game board to properly positon and hold anet at the bottom of the board so as to extend forwardly thereof andproject beyond both sides.

A further object of our invention is to make the frame brackets ofhinged sections whereby said brackets may be folded against the gameboard when not in use.

A still further object of the invention is to provide means along thelower edge of the game board to attach the rear border of the netthereto.

With the above and other .objects in View this invention consists of thedetails of construction and combination of elements hereinafter setforth and then designated by the claims.

In order that those skilled in the art to which this inventionappertains may understand how to make and use the same we will describeits construction in detail referring by numerals to the accompanyingdrawing in which:-

Fig. l is a perspective view of Va game board with our invention appliedthereto.

Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the same.

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary perspective view of a modication wherein thebrackets are made of hinged sections.

Fig. 4 is a similar View with the sections of a bracketillustrated infolded positions.

Fig. 5 is a fragmentary vertical section view showing the attachingmeans on the lower edge of the game board and engaging the rear borderof the net.

In carrying out our invention as herein embodied I@ is a game boardwhich is. generally placed in an upright or vertical position to havegame pieces projected at it with the idea that said game pieces shallbecome temporarily attached to said board to score points for a playerin a game. Where darts are used these are projected at the board in anendeavor to suiiiciently penetrate said board that they will temporarilyremain attached thereto. Some of the game pieces or darts will not stickand in order to prevent them from falling onto the floor or onto orbehind articles beneath the game board we have provided a net Il whichis indirectly supported by said game board.

'I'o the sides of the game board I0 at or adjacent the bottom areattached the brackets I2 and I3 constituting a net holding frame. Eachbracket includes an upright I4 for detachable securement to the sideedges of the game board by securing means I5 such as screws. From theupright Ill a reach arm I6 extends laterally away from the side of theboard to which its respective upright is attached and a leg I1 projectsforwardly from the reach arm at right angles thereto and in the samehorizontal plane.

The net I I is of small mesh yieldable textile material and has hems I8at both ends to telescope over the forwardly projecting legs I'I of thebrackets I2 and I3 and when thus mounted the net extends a considerabledistance beyond both sides of the game board and in front of the facethereof at or slightly below the lower edge. of the same.

In order to prevent any possibility of such game pieces or darts as mayfall onto the net from rolling or falling between the rear border ofsaid net and the game board, hooks I9 or equivalent fasteners aresecured to the lower edge of said game board and the rear border of thenet is attached thereto.

The modified form of the brackets, one of which is illustrated in Figs.3 and 4, comprises an upright to be attached to the side edges of thegame board by securing means 2l, a reach arm 22 hinged at its inner endto the lower end of said upright, as at 23, and a leg 24 hinged at itsrear end to the outer end of the reach arm, as at 25.

The net Il is the same in either case and in connection with themodification the hems I8 are placed over the legs 24 and the rear borderis attached to the hooks I9 when the net is in an open position. If thegame board is not being used, the rear border of the net is unhooked,the reach arms 22 folded up against the upright 20 and the legs 24folded in against the face of the game board, Fig. 4. The net can remainhanging from the brackets or it can be removed and stored.

It will be obvious that when the net is in use it will catch darts thatfall in various lines of 20 descent due to the expanse and position infront and to both sides of the game board. Because of the texture. andmaterial of the net the points or feather pins of any darts falling intothe net will not be broken or otherwise damaged thereby overcomingdelays incident to replacement of damaged darts and saving the expenseof purchasing new ones.

Of course we do not wish to be limited to the exact details ofconstruction herein shown and described as these may be varied Withinthe limits of the appended claims without departing from the spirit andscope of our invention.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim as new and usefuliszl. A game board net, comprising brackets for attachment to the sidesof a game board, each bracket including an upright, a reach armextending outward from the lower end of the upright at right anglesthereto and a leg projecting forwardly from the outer end of the reacharm at right angles to said arm and in the same plane, and a yieldablesmall mesh net having hems at each end for projection over the bracketlegs.

2. The combination with a game board, of a pair of brackets eachcomprising an upright, a reach arm projecting at right angles from thelower end of the upright and a leg projecting at right angles from theouter end of the reach arm, means to fasten the brackets to the sideedges of the game board with the reach arms extending laterally from theboard and the legs projecting forwardly in the same horizontal plane asthe reach arms, and a net of textile fabric stretched across the spacebetween the bracket legs.

3. The structure in claim 2, in combination with fasteners secured tothe bottom edge of the game board and having the rear border of the netattached to said fasteners.

4. In a device of the kind described, a game board, a pair of bracketseach comprising an upright, a reach arm hinged to the lower end of theupright and a leg hinged to the outer end of the reach arm, means tofasten said brackets by JOSEPH J. MCCULLOUGH. WILLIAM K. L. MCCULLOUGH.

